Dispensing device for packaged articles



A. OLSON Oct. 2, 1951 DISPENSING DEVICE FOR PACKAGED ARTICLES Filed April 28, 1949 FIGJ.

INVENTOR. CARL A. OLSON ATTORNEY.

Patented Oct. 2, 1951 UNITED DISPENSING DEVICE FOR'PACKAGED ARTICLES Garl. A. Olson, J amaica, N. Y. Application April 28, 1949,"Serial No. 90,119

3 Claims. 1 I

This invention relates to an improved dispensing device particularly designed for 'the'distribution-of sanitary napkins. Its object is to provide a simple, inexpensive apparatus which forms a magazine for enclosing a plurality of'such articles and amanually operable mechanism for moving the articles one by one into a position of ready accessibility. The mechanism may be locked by a coin-control device.

These and other objects of the invention will appear in the following specification, in which I will describe the preferred "form of the device and will point out its novel features in claims.

Referring to the drawings,

Fig. 1 is a front elevation of a device which is made. in accordance with and embodies my invention. In this figure one of its protective flaps is broken away to show the-parts-behind it;

Fig. 2 is a side'elevation, partly in section, taken on the line 22 of Fig. 1;

Figs. 3 a'nd 4 are sectional plan views of thedevice shown in the preceding figures, with the parts which form the operating mechanism and the protective flaps in different operative positions. The sections in both of these figures are taken on-the line 3--3 of Fig. 1-;-and

Fig. 5 is a partial elevation showing 'the protective flaps closed.

[0 designates a casing, in which the upper part II forms a receptacle, and the lower part l2 encloses the operating mechanism. Over the upper part is a hinged cover I3, which may be locked in its closed position by suitable means, such as a padlock I4. The lower part is closed by a base l5, upon which the operatin mechanism is supported. A horizontal slot I6 is formed in the part 12 of the casing over which hang freely movable pivoted flaps ll, l8. I9, is are vertical guides inside of the upper part of the casing.

The operating mechanism comprises a vertical shaft rotatably supported a bearing 2| on the base I5. 22 is a lever projecting from a hub 23 aflixed to the shaft under the base. 24 is a tension spring between a pin 25 on the hub 23 and a pin 26 on the base. Pins 21, 28 limit the move ment of the lever 22.

30 is a turntable afiixed to the upper end of the shaft 20. This is preferably stamped out of sheet metal and forms an elongated open-ended trough having a flat horizontal base 3|, vertical parallel sides 32 and outwardly flaring flanges 33 which extend horizontally from parts of the upper edges of the sides 32. The outer edges of these flanges terminate in arcs, the center of which is in the is of the shaft Z0.

Aplurality of elongated packages A, B, C, etc. are placed inthe upper part II of the casing. The spring 24 normally holds the turntablewith its trough in the position shown in Figs. 1, 2 and 3. The lower package A drops down in the trough. The guides l9 so position the packages that one end of the package A, for example, is in substantial alinement with the left-hand end of the turntable, as shown in Figs. 1 and 3, and its other end a extends beyond the right-hand end of the turntable.

When an operator turns the lever in a clockwise direction, as viewed from above, the turntable can be rotated degrees to the position shown in Fig. 4. The upper and lower surfaces ofthe packages are convex so that the weight of the packages above the package A does not retard this movement. The sides 32 of the trough are shorter than the depth of the packages.

During this rotary movement one of the sides of the turntable engages and lifts the flap I! into theposition shown at NA in Fig. 2, and it will remain in this position resting on the projecting end a of the package until the package is removed. During this movement of the turntable the projecting end a of the package will engage and lift the flap l8 and will passbeyond this flap to allow the latter to drop down into its initial closed position. Then, if the operator releases the lever 22 the projecting end a of the package will engage the closed flap l8 and thus prevent the sprin 25 from returning the package A into the casing.

When the turntable has been rotated, the package B will drop down onto the flanges 33 and will be supported thereon until the turntable is returned to its initial position, when it will drop down into the trough. This operation may then be repeated. The operation thus described puts one package at a time into a position where it can be grasped and readily removed.

It is my intention to lock the lever 22 by a known coin-release mechanism, which is indicated at X in the drawings. In this connection it is to be noted that only one of the packages can be moved out of the cabinet for each movement of the lever.

Various modifications in construction, mode of operation, method and use of an invention may and do occur to others, especially after benefiting from knowledge of such a disclosure as that herein presented of the principles involved, but the invention itself is not confined to the present showing- I claimi 1. A dispensing device for substantially rectangular elongated packages, said device comprising a casing forming a magazine for holding a plurality of packages in substantially vertical alinement and constructed to form a slot in one of its sides, a turntable under the magazine rotatable on an axis offset from the longitudinal center of the packages in the magazine, a trough formed in the turntable adapted to receive the lowermost package, one end of said trough terminating at a distance from the axis of rotation near one of the ends of the packages, the other end of the turntable projecting further from said axis but short of the other ends of the packages, resilient means for holding the turntable with its trough parallel with the packages in the magazine, a pair of independently andfreely pivoted flaps over the slot, and means for rotating the turntable and the package in it trough manual- 1y to protract the package through the slot in the casing, said turntable being arranged to lift both of the flaps and to pass one of the flaps and allow it to drop back of the protracted package.

2. A dispensing device for substantially rectangular elongated packages, said device comprising a casing forming a magazine for holding a plurality of packages in substantially vertical alinement and constructed to form a slot in one of its sides, a turntable under the magazine rotatable on an axis offset from the longitudinal center of the packages in the magazine, a trough formed in the turntable adapted to receive the lowermost package, one end of said trough terminating at a distance from the axis of rotation near one of the ends of the packages, the other end of the turntable projecting further from said axis but short of the other ends of the packages, resilient means for holding the turntable with its trough parallel with the package in the magazine, flanges extending outwardly from parts of the upper edges of the trough, a pair of independently and freely pivoted flaps over the slot, and means for rotating the turntable and the package in its trough manually to move the flanges under the package in the trough 'of the turntable, and to protract the package through the slot in the casing, said turntable being arranged to lift both of the flaps and to pass one of the flaps and allow it to drop back of the protracted package.

3. A dispensing device for substantially rectangular elongated packages, said device comprising a casing forming a magazine for holding a plurality of packages in substantially vertical alinement and'constructed to form a slot in one of its sides, a turntable under the magazine rotatable on an axis offset from the longitudinal center of the packages in the magazine, a trough formed in the turntable adapted to receive the lowermost package, one end of said trough terminating at a distance from the axis of rotation near one of the ends of the packages, the other end of the turntable projecting further from said axis but short of the other ends of the packages, resilient means for holding the turntable with its trough parallel with the packages in the magazine, arcuate flanges concentric with the axis of rotation extending outwardly from parts of the upper edges of the trough, a pair of independently and freely pivoted flaps over the slot, and means for rotating the turntable and the package in its trough manually to move the flanges under the package next above the package in the trough of the turntable, and to protract the package through the slot in the casing, said turntable being arranged to lift both of the flaps and to pass one of the flaps and allow it to drop back of the protracted package.

CARL A. OLSON.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 924,526 Allison June 16, 1909 1,163,080 Gifford Dec. 7, 1915 2,165,998 De Silvestro July 11, 1939 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 404,881 France of 1909 

